Sweet Sixteen
by Amarielah
Summary: Yato adolescence can be volatile, which becomes increasingly apparent in a 16-year-old Kagura. Gintoki is faced with a decision that a lesser man would not find quite so difficult, and Kagura isn’t willing to take ‘no’ for an answer. Kagura/Gintoki
1. Chapter 1

Summary: Yato adolescence can be volatile and unpredictable, which becomes increasingly apparent in a 16-year-old Kagura. Gintoki is faced with a decision that a lesser man would not find quite so difficult, and Kagura isn't willing to take 'no' for an answer. Kagura/Gintoki.

Disclaimer: I do not own Gintama. I only wish that I was capable of creating something so amazing.

A/N: I don't know why I love this pairing so much, but I do. I tried my best to keep this believable; hopefully I succeeded.

WARNINGS (Important. Please read.): Heavy, if inexplicit, sexual themes, mild language, and a pairing that you may find squicky.

**Sweet Sixteen**

Chapter One:

"Ne, Gin-chan?"

"Hmm?"

"I want chocolate-covered sukonbu."

Gintoki shifted a little on the couch, so that he could give Kagura an appropriately disgusted look. "Excuse me?"

"I said, 'I want chocolate-covered sukonbu.' Are you deaf?"

"I heard you, idiot. I just wanted to make sure that I wasn't hallucinating." He turned his eyes back to the television, where some violent gameshow with obnoxious music was playing out on screen. "You trying to make me sick, or something?"

"Not really. I just really feel like some."

"Well you're out of luck, 'cause nobody in their right mind would sell it."

He heard her get up, and the rustle of the main shoji sliding open a few moments later. "Oi!" he called. "Where are you going at this time of night?"

"To the conveniece store," she replied, and he could just picture the way her face was tilted upwards, nose in the air. "I'm gonna buy some chocolate."

_With what money? _He almost asked, but figured she'd work something out. Instead, he said, "Get the cheap kind."

"Sure," she said, and then her sandals were clacking loudly on the wooden balcony outside of the Yorozuya. Heaving a sigh, Gintoki got up to slide the shoji closed.

* * *

The next morning, Gintoki found the kitchen in disarray. Almost their entire inventory of pots (which, admittedly, was not very extensive) was out, either on top of or next to the stove, and the sickly-sweet smell of burnt sugar hung in the air. Empty sukonbu boxes littered the floor, and the rubbish bin was filled to the brim with the torn wrappers of chocolate bars.

He stormed over to Kagura's closet. Flinging the shoji open, he yelled, "Just what the hell did you do in the kitchen? Go and clean up your mess!"

But Kagura didn't even stir. She was fast asleep, hadn't even changed out of her day clothes (a green Chinese-style shirt with baggy black pants, because she had long grown out of her orange dress). There was chocolate smeared all around her mouth, like a child who didn't yet know how to eat properly. Gintoki could make out tracks down her cheeks.

Even though he knew even a foghorn wouldn't wake her up, he still gave in to the impulse to tread lightly as he went back into the sitting room, and made extra careful to close the shoji of Kagura's closet gently. He sensed that he was out of his element, somehow, though he couldn't for the life of him figure out what the nagging inner voice of his intuition was trying to tell him.

Shinpachi showed up a few minutes later, and had a similar reaction to Gintoki's when he caught sight of the kitchen. His reaction when he caught sight of Kagura, however, was different.

"I'm worried about her," he said, without pretense. "Kagura-chan's been acting odd lately." Gintoki gave him a sidelong look, and Shinpachi added, "More odd than _usual_. Still, I'm worried."

"I'm sure she'll be fine," said Gintoki, only half believing it. He was out of his element, after all, and he had the feeling that, this time, his wooden sword and heartfelt speeches weren't going to be able to be of much help.

They had no clients that day, so Shinpachi decided to go home early.

Kagura woke up around six in the evening, and she spent an hour in the bathroom. She came out looking clean, but tired, as if she had just beaten up an entire group of fairly powerful thugs. Plonking herself down on the couch, Gintoki managed to glimpse her from the corner of his eye; she hadn't even glanced at the television, she was just looking at _him_.

He mumbled a half-hearted excuse about buying strawberry milk, and left to take a nice, long walk.

* * *

Gintoki was pissed.

He had gone into his closet looking for something of dire importance, only to find it missing. Namely, his stash of adult magazines. JUMP got thrown in the garbage, because JUMP could only be read so many times before you had a story memorized back and forth. But a single picture in an adult magazine had much longer mileage, because he was the one making up the stories. So, due his limited budget and limitless imagination, he kept a pile of them stored away in his bedroom closet.

And they were missing.

Suspecting one of Kagura's pranks, which had become increasingly sophisticated over the past two years, he once again found himself making his way to her sleeping closet. She had taken to long naps in the past few weeks, but this was the first time he was glad for it; these days she was much easier to find.

He didn't bother to knock as he opened her shoji, and his mouth froze open at what he saw, the angry words wedging in his throat.

He had been right, except he wished that he wasn't.

As he stepped away from those wide, horrified blue eyes, he did his best to wipe the image out of his mind; Kagura, face flushed and fingers slick between her thighs, one of his magazines held white-knuckled in hand.

* * *

A few hours later, as was their routine, Kagura came to join him in front of the television.

"Gin-chan," she said. "About what you saw..."

He could have responded in a million different ways, but he chose to go the safest route. "It's alright, Kagura; I understand."

She hesitated. "You do?"

The television in the background was a comfort; it made things a little less awkward. "Yes. You're experiencing a natural curiosity that comes with growing up. There's nothing to be ashamed of."

He felt smugly satisfied, because his answer sounded like something straight out of a sex-ed movie. The feeling didn't last long, though, as his head suddenly exploded with pain.

"You idiot!" yelled Kagura. Through the stars in his vision, he could make out tears rolling thickly down her cheeks. "You don't understand _anything_!" And then she was pinning him down with her alien strength, her mouth pressed firmly against his.

Completely stunned, his eyes were almost comically wide. He could feel her tongue pressing against his lips, and he panicked. Using all of his might, he shoved her as hard as he could. It was enough to get her off of him, though just barely.

"What do you think you're doing!" he demanded.

Kagura averted her gaze, unable to look at him. "I was just trying to make you understand," she said, although her words lacked their previous fire. She sounded scared and confused, and Gintoki felt a little bit guilty for being so rough with her.

"Make me _understand_?" he blustered, the image of Kagura's earlier activities popping to the forefront of his mind. He attempted violently to quash it, but it proved futile. "What could you possibly make me understand by kissing me, you idiot!"

Kagura was sniffling now, and she reached up to scrub her eyes with the sleeve of her pajamas. When she removed her arm from in front of her eyes, she looked at him with some odd combination of a pout and a glare. "Isn't it obvious?"

It was, but that didn't make it any easier to accept. "No," he lied. "It isn't."

Her eyes blazed in response, and she shifted closer. He recognized the look on her face; it was the one she got whenever she wanted something, and was willing to do anything to get it. He had come to dread that look. "When I think about you," she said, moving yet a little bit closer, "I get all hot inside, like I'm burning up. And my panties get sticky, and no matter what I do it's never enough; the feeling never really goes away." Her bottom lip began to tremble again. "It hurts, Gin-chan." She was right in front of him, now, and looking directly into his eyes. "It hurts so much." She leaned in, one hand braced on his thigh. "Please help me, Gin-chan."

Gintoki couldn't bring himself to look away. His eyes trailed over her face, from her pretty blue eyes to the curve of her lips. For a moment, he seriously considered it. Considered leaning in to kiss her, considered lowering her onto the floor and fucking her. And not just because she was offering it; he'd been offered it before, by whores during the rebellion, by Sa-chan, and it had been easy, then, to refuse. But this was _Kagura_, who was telling him that she was hurting, and telling him how to make it better, and he wasn't blind to fact that she had grown up. Not at all. So a small, guilty part of him wouldn't mind giving it, would even enjoy it.

But…

"I can't," he finally said, voice cracking. "I'm sorry, Kagura, but it's wrong."

"I don't care," she said, and leaned in to kiss him again. He turned his head to the side, though, and her lips met his cheek instead.

"You will," he inisisted. "Maybe not tonight, but when you wake up. And then you'll hate me."

He waited, expecting her to burst into tears, or maybe to punch him again. She did neither. "You really don't know _anything_," she said, softly; dangerously. She pushed herself off of his lap and stood up. "Just you wait. I'll show you that you're wrong." She walked to her closet and said, without looking back, "Good night, Gin-chan."

She slammed the shoji shut.

Gintoki was left alone, painfully hard and completely at a loss.

The television, playing a commercial about some new medication for erectile dysfunction, almost seemed to be mocking him.


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I don't own Gintama.

WARNINGS (Important. Please read.): Heavy, if inexplicit, sexual themes, mild language, and a pairing that you may find squicky.

Chapter Two:

The next morning, Gintoki awoke with a distinct feeling of dread settling heavy in his stomach. Doing his best to ignore it, he pushed himself off of his futon and headed for his desk, where he had left a half-drunk carton of strawberry milk the night before (nothing like something sweet to ease rattled nerves, regardless of how bad his doctor said it was that refined carbohydrates put him straight to sleep). Sniffing it suspiciously, he decided it was probably a good idea to just throw it out.

He found Kagura upon reaching the kitchen, where he had planned to pour the remaining milk down sink before tossing the carton in the garbage (he had learnt this method the hard way, after discovering that strawberry milk had a tendency to spoil in the trash, and then drip all over your clothes when you tried to dispose of said trash). She was humming to herself, Sadaharu seated next to her, as she boiled rice for breakfast, and Gintoki seriously considered backing out of the room before she noticed him. This plan was short-lived, however, because Sadaharu 'yiffed' loudly, alerting Kagura that he had arrived.

"Morning, Gin-chan," she said a little too cheerfully as she turned around. She had a big grin on her face. Gintoki was instantly wary.

"Good morning," he replied.

"I made some rice," she said, as if it wasn't obvious. "We can eat it together."

Gintoki eyed the pot. "I think I'll make my own, thanks."

She turned around again, this time to give him a pointed look. "Come on—you think I've spiked it with Viagra, or something?" She sounded incredulous, which told Gintoki that she had at least considered it as an option. He was suddenly very glad that he hadn't drunk the rest of the strawberry milk in his hand, and he promptly poured it into the sink. It was satisfying to watch the swirl of artificial pink as it went down the drain.

After he saw the last of the milk slosh its way to the sewer (and, thankfully, far away from his stomach), Gintoki walked over to the fridge, only to find that it was near-empty aside from four eggs and a rather unappetizing 'gift' from Otae, which was either an omelet or okinomiyaki (and quite possibly neither).

"This is the last of the rice, by the way," Kagura informed him, and although he couldn't see her face, he could just _hear_ the smug smile that was undoubtedly stretched across it. She scratched behind Sadaharu's ears, and the giant dog gave a 'yiff' of appreciation.

As he closed the fridge, Gintoki admitted defeat (if only to himself), and prayed that Shinpachi would hurry the hell up.

* * *

The rice was undercooked and gritty, and Gintoki made a point of complaining loudly about it. Whatever mood Kagura was in seemed to be persistent, however, and she happily ignored him as she cracked an egg into her bowl, going about her mealtime routine of inhaling her food. Unsure of how exactly to approach further conversation without it turning to a topic that he really, really wanted to avoid, Gintoki took extra care to chew as slowly as humanly possible. Sadaharu, picking up on the tension, left for Gintoki's bedroom.

Shinpachi showed up just as the silence was becoming unbearably awkward.

"Good morning," he greeted.

The sound of chewing was his only reply.

"Um…did something happen that nobody is telling me about?" he asked, because it certainly wouldn't have been the first time.

"Nope," said Gintoki, after finally allowing himself to swallow the mouthful of rice that he had been chewing for the past five minutes. "I don't have any idea why you'd get that impression."

Shinpachi looked back and forth between his two friends, both of whom were a little too occupied with their meals.

"…Sure," he said, sitting down and, with some trepidation, serving himself a helping of rice.

Kagura was gazing thoughtfully into her empty bowl when she finally decided to speak up. "Ne, Shinpachi?"

"Hmm?" replied Shinpachi, through a mouthful of rice.

Gintoki felt the hair on the back of his neck stand on end.

"If I asked you to fuck me, would you do it?"

Shinpachi sprayed the table with half-eaten goo. "WHAT DID YOU SAY?!" he shouted, voice abnormally high, and gave Kagura a wide-eyed look of disbelief.

Gintoki put his head in his hands and groaned.

"I said: 'If I asked you to fuck me, would you do it?'"

"NO!" exclaimed Shinpachi, horrified, as he scrambled away from the table like it had some kind of contagious disease.

Kagura's voice was eerily calm as she asked, "Why not?" She finally looked up, and her face betrayed what her voice had effectively concealed; her bottom lip was trembling, and her eyes were misting over. "Am I fat, or something? Am—" she swallowed, "—am I ugly?"

Gintoki had finally reached the limit of his patience. He slammed his hands down on the table, causing his bowl to topple over and the rice still inside of it to pour out. "You _idiot_!" he yelled. "When did I ever say that you were ugly?"

"…What?" asked Shinpachi.

"You may as well have!" yelled Kagura, tears running down flushed cheeks. "Why else would you be so repulsed by the thought of touching me?"

"…_What_?" asked Shinpachi.

"Did you even listen to a word of what I was saying? It had nothing to do with repulsion and _everything _to do with you being an impulsive little brat who doesn't have the first clue about what she wants!"

Shinpachi found himself looking back and forth between them once more, their words taking far too long to register in his brain. He took in Kagura's blushing, tear-stained face, Gintoki's look of frustrated anger, and, suddenly, everything clicked together. He felt something like panic clawing uncomfortably in his abdomen.

"You mean to tell me," Shinpachi began, not trusting himself to speak louder than a whisper, "that Kagura-chan tried to—"

"_Yes_!" shouted Gintoki.

"But you _didn't_—"

"_No_!" shouted Kagura, bursting into full-blown sobs.

Shinpachi took a moment to survey the scene before him, and felt the panic grow. "I…" he said. "I think I'm gonna go." And then he ran out of the Yozoruha as fast as he possibly could.

Gintoki watched him leave, and felt his own panic increasing to near dangerous levels. He was tempted to follow, but he couldn't just leave Kagura on her own while she was crying, because, however stupid the cause of her misery was, she was genuinely miserable.

He took a deep breath to try and calm himself down. "Listen," he said. "I know it may seem like this is something really important right now, but in a few days you'll look back and be glad that nothing happened."

"Do you honestly believe that?" asked Kagura from between her knees. Her sobbing had stopped. "You think that this is something that just started yesterday?" She looked up, the whites of her eyes stained red from crying. "Are you really that much of an idiot?"

"What do you mean?" asked Gintoki, not really wanting to know.

"I've always…ever since…" She rested her head between her knees once more. "I just couldn't take it anymore, Gin-chan. Do you think that I'm lying when I say that it hurts?"

Gintoki scratched his cheek, not knowing what to say.

"…Do you know what I did last night, after I went to bed?"

He had made a vested effort not to think about that very question. Not when he had taken a long, cold shower. Not when he had gorged himself on strawberry milk. And certainly not when he had forced himself to go to sleep.

"I touched myself, just like you saw yesterday." She sighed. "But it didn't help; not even a little bit."

Gintoki tried to ignore the way that his blood rushed downwards at those words. Summoning up what was left of his courage, he said, "Just…tell me how long this has been going on."

Kagura looked him straight in the eye. "A year," she said. "Maybe longer."

Gintoki slapped his forehead, although it was a gesture of frustration more than anything else. His resolve was quickly dwindling, because he knew that Kagura was telling him the truth. It would have been easier, so much easier, if she had just been lying.

Kagura was looking at him with so much longing, and it made a lump form in his throat. He should have realized it sooner. _Damn_, he thought. _I really am an idiot_.

"Fine," he said, covering his eyes with his hand. "Fine. If you swear that you're not going to regret it, I'll…I'll do it with you."

He removed his hand to see what her reaction was, but all he caught was a blur as he was bowled over. A tongue found its way into his mouth.

This time, he kissed back.

But not for long.

"Wait," he said, pulling away. Kagura began to nibble on his earlobe. "Wait," he said again, as she began to kiss down his jaw. Becoming fed up, he stilled her head with both of his hands, tilting her chin so that he could look her in the eye. "We _are_ going to do this, but not _now_."

She wiggled her hips against his, and he fought hard to suppress a moan. "_When_?" she asked, breathing heavily.

"Tonight," he said. "Just give me until tonight, okay?"

"Why?"

"Because the last thing you need is to get pregnant." It wasn't the only reason, but it was the only one that he knew she would accept. He wasn't going to tell her that it just felt wrong to do the nasty ten minutes after Shinpachi had freaked out at the very thought of it and run away (not to mention that Sadaharu was in Gintoki's bedroom, and it would be downright weird to do anything, knowing that the sentient animal could hear them).

But she was apparently satisfied with his response. "Alright," she said, and pushed herself up using Gintoki's chest, knocking some of the wind out of him. "Tonight, Gin-chan. You promise?"

"I promise."

Kagura gave him a smile that somehow managed to be both shy and seductive at the same time. She left the Yozoruha with a skip in her step.

Gintoki wasn't sure whether he was excited or terrified.


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I do not own Gintama.

Warnings: Sexual themes, slight language.

A/N: To read the full, explicit version of this chapter, please visit my livejournal. I will not be posting it here for obvious reasons.

* * *

The bell on the pharmacy door was a particularly obnoxious addition to an already obnoxious day, and Gintoki had half a mind to reach up and yank it off. Luckily, he still had enough good sense to resist that particular impulse; the last thing he needed was to give the Shinsengumi another excuse to bother him, especially over such trivial property damage.

The aisles weren't labeled. He cursed internally as he walked over to the cashier, an elderly man with thick glasses.

"Excuse me," he said, leaning in close. "Where can I find the condoms?"

The cashier blinked up at him owlishly. "Heh?" he said, putting a hand to his ear and leaning in closer himself.

Raising his voice a little, Gintoki asked, "Where can I find the condoms?"

"Heh?" the cashier said, wrinkled face scrunching up in consternation.

"Where can I find the condoms?" Gintoki asked again, louder still.

The cashier's hand was shaking from the effort of holding it up so long. "Heh?" he said.

Gintoki, already on edge from the events of that morning, reached the end of patience. "WHERE CAN I FIND THE CONDOMS, YOU DEAF OLD GEEZER?!" His voice echoed around the entire store, and almost seemed to make the walls shake with its sheer volume.

"Oh," said the cashier, using his other hand to pick his nose. His mouth opened slightly as he lapsed into deep thought. "Aisle five."

Fuming, Gintoki headed over to aisle five, trying his best to ignore the disapproving glare he received from some middle aged lady who had been standing in line to pay. And, lo and behold, he ran into a familiar face. A very unwelcome familiar face.

"_You_," he said.

Dark eyes narrowed. "It's not '_you'; _it's Katsura."

"What the _hell_ are you doing here?"

Katsura huffed. "I'm here looking for the materials necessary to construct explosive devices with which I can overthrow the corrupt Shogunate, and drive the Amanto out of Edo once and for all."

"Bullshit," said Gintoki.

They glared at each other for several moments, until Katsura decided to relent. "Fine," he said, crossing his arms. "Elizabeth has been experiencing some...problems, recently, and I am here in an attempt to alleviate her distress."

Gintoki glanced furtively at the items that Katsura had been perusing; they were all medicated creams for fungal infections and, particularly, athlete's foot. "Ah," he said.

Both men felt a wave of awkwardness, and turned back to the shelf at the same time. Whose bright idea was it to put condoms next to fungal creams, anyway?

"So, Gintoki," said Katsura, reaching for a brightly-coloured box. "I couldn't help but overhear that you are looking for condoms."

"Perhaps," said Gintoki, reaching for a box of medium-sized condoms with a picture of a scantily clad woman on the front. 'Ribbed for her pleasure,' it read.

"Water-balloon fight?" asked Katsura, putting the box back and pulling out another one.

"Yeah," said Gintoki, doing the same. "That's right; I'm using these for a water-balloon fight."

"You know," said Katsura, ostensibly examining the ingredients on his most recent acquisition. "I'm certain that penis-shaped water balloons would be a very effective revolutionary tool."

Gintoki gave him a sidelong glance. "No."

"I'm serious," said Katsura. "Men these days are intent on establishing their heterosexuality. Undoubtedly, they would be thrown into a panic if phallic objects filled with liquid were launched at them from above, thus making them vulnerable to attacks from more conventional weapons."

"I know that you're serious," replied Gintoki. "That's what makes it disturbing." Deciding that the box he currently had in his hand was good enough, he made his way back to the cashier without bothering to add anything further.

The bell rang obnoxiously as he exited the pharmacy.

* * *

Gintoki hummed in satisfaction, sweetness melting languidly on his tongue. There was nothing quite like a parfait on a summer's day; he felt better already.

"You should stop making those noises; people could get the wrong idea."

Gintoki opened his eyes to see a bored-looking Hijikata sitting across from him. "This is my booth," he said. "Get your own, mayo-freak."

"We got a report about an hour ago," said Hijikata, taking a drag on his cigarette. "Some lady insisted that you were disturbing the peace."

Gintoki suppressed the urge to groan. "You guys must be bored, or something. Is your caseload really that light?"

"As if that matters, you ass. Give me one good reason why I shouldn't arrest you right now."

Gintoki took another spoonful of his parfait, pretending to think. "If you arrest me," he said, after swallowing, "then you'll have to deal with a crazed and hormonal alien brat who just happens to have super strength."

"That a threat?"

"No," said Gintoki. "It's a fact; and one that I'm not particularly happy about, myself." It was only a half-lie. "So, why are you _really_ here?"

"…We need your help with a case."

"Not interested."

Hijikata's eyebrows twitched, as if he was trying to restrain himself. "We'll pay you," he said.

That caught Gintoki's attention, except…

"Normally, this is the part where I say that I'd be willing to do it for money. But, you see, that crazed and hormonal alien is still going to be a factor in this equation. When exactly does this case of yours require my services?"

"_Now_, you idiot."

"And does it involve anybody in immediate mortal or spiritual peril?"

Hijikata glared. "No."

"Sorry," said Gintoki, not really meaning it. "No can do. I already have plans. Good luck with that, though." He scoffed down the rest of his parfait, which had partially melted, and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. "If you don't have it sorted out by tomorrow, and you're still willing to pay me…well, then we can talk."

Before Hijikata had a chance to respond, Gintoki sprinted out of the booth, leaving the other man scowling darkly through the window at his steadily retreating form.

* * *

"Bastard," Hijikata growled, but didn't move to reach for his sword, no matter how tempting it was.

"Ne, Hijikata-san," said an impassive voice from behind him.

"Gah!" exclaimed Hijikata, jumping a little in his seat. "Don't just show up out of nowhere, Okita."

Okita ignored him. "Boss was talking about a 'crazed and hormonal alien with super strength'. It sounds dangerous; we should investigate."

Hijikata snorted. "He was probably just talking about that alien girl he lives with. Kagome, or whatever."

"Kagura," said Okita. "And you may be right, but I don't think that we should take a chance. Do you want to wait until we're bogged down with reports on the property damage?"

Hijikata turned around, giving Okita a look of suspicion. "You're up to something," he said. "I don't know what it is, or why, but you're definitely up to something."

Okita smiled. "Whatever gave you that idea? I'm simply acting in the Shinsengumi's best interests."

"We still haven't dealt with this most recent slew of underwear thefts."

"…Property damage, Hijikata-san."

Hijikata stood up. "Fine," he said. "Investigate, if you want. It's not like I can stop you, anyway."

He didn't bother to look back as he left the diner. If he had, he would have seen a very peculiar expression on Okita's face.

* * *

Gintoki arrived back at the Yorozuya to find it empty save for Sadaharu, who was napping quietly in Gintoki's bedroom. Making his way over to his desk, Gintoki slumped down into his chair and reached into his yukata, pulling out a small plastic bag. He put it down in front of him to examine (as if it could give him the answers to life, the universe, and why the hell this was happening). The box that sat inside of the innocuous layer of white plastic almost seemed to emanate a sense of finality. It was absurd, he realized, to feel this way about a box of condoms. But he couldn't help it.

He was nervous.

He sat there for a few minutes, tapping his foot against the floor. Eventually he tired of this, and decided to go through some of the bills that had piled up over the last few months; bills that were probably never going to be paid.

Eventually the front shouji slid open, and Gintoki's head snapped up from the invoice that he had not really been reading.

"I'm home," said Kagura, looking at him with an almost frightening intensity. Her clothes were torn and muddy, and there were scratches – light, but still noticeable – on both of her arms.

"Hey," said Gintoki, his eyes moving up and down her figure with something entirely different from lust. "What the hell happened to you?"

"Nothing," she said, walking around the two couches in the middle of the room, until she was right in front of Gintoki's desk. "I just ran into some idiots who were asking for a beating."

"That so?" he asked.

Kagura didn't reply as she sat down on the desk and slid herself over so that she was just inches away from Gintoki, almost face to face. She licked her lips and pushed herself forward, forcing Gintoki to move his chair back in order to make room. She then sat herself down in his lap, straddling him securely as she wound her arms around his neck.

Gintoki felt his body reacting to the closeness, and his heart rate accelerated. "Are you sure about this?" he asked, feeling her breath ghosting against his lips.

"You already know the answer to that," she said, pressing herself even more intimately against him as she buried her head into the crook of his neck, breathing in his scent.

He found himself looking up at the light on the ceiling, unsure of what to do with his hands. He wanted to return her embrace, but he also wanted to dig his fingers into the armrests of his chair. In the end, he found a comfortable middle ground: doing nothing. Growing frustrated at his own uncertainty, he said, "If you're expecting me to be good at this…"

She tightened her arms a little, her grip becoming just short of painful. "Don't care," she said, voice slightly muffled by the fabric of his yukata. She then raised her head and removed her arms from their death-grip around his neck, reaching up to cup his face with both of her hands.

The feel of those hands, calloused and warm, was like a spark igniting a fire. It was like a dam had burst inside of him, and all of the pent-up worry and frustration and _need _came bubbling to the surface. Suddenly, he found that he didn't really care anymore; not about awkwardness, or about judgment, or about Sadaharu overhearing them. He found that he couldn't stop himself as his arms wound around her waist, couldn't stop the way that his lips met hers with almost embarrassing eagerness.

Kagura moaned into his mouth, deepening the kiss with a passion that was even more intense than his, more desperate. She broke the kiss when she lowered her hands from his face, maneuvering one of them to pull down the already loose sleeve of his yukata, while she braced the other against his shoulder.

"Move your arm," she said, tugging meaningfully at his sleeve once she realized that it wouldn't come off.

"Oh," said Gintoki, too distracted to be embarrassed, and he released his arms from around her waist. She didn't hesitate, making quick work of the yukata, and then starting on the buttons of his black shirt. Before Gintoki had time to gather his wits, he was already bare-chested.

Kagura began to trace his muscular abdomen with the tips of her fingers, stopping every so often to pay special attention to one of his many scars.

"Gin-chan…" she said, her expression softening. "Gin-chan has been hurt way too much."

Thrown off kilter by the sudden change in her demeanor, Gintoki didn't reply.

Kagura didn't seem to be waiting for one, though, and she leaned forward, placing her lips upon one of the more prominent scars, just above his heart. She lingered there for a moment, her lips warm and soft against his skin, and Gintoki felt a swell of affection that made his mouth run dry. Gently, he placed his hands on her shoulders and pushed her upright, leaning in for another kiss.

It was slower this time, more tender, but no less intense. Gintoki allowed his hands to wander up and down Kagura's back, to trace the gentle curve of her hips. He wanted this, he realized, as her tongue moved hot and slick and wet against his own. He wanted it very, very much.


End file.
